I'll Be There for You
by Sarah32924
Summary: Faith is having family issues. Who will be there to rescue her from the torment? Please R&R!
1. Default Chapter

"I don't want you working with him! I am not going to tell you again! Tomorrow morning I am calling the station and telling your boss to change your partner." Fred yelled.  
  
"You do not have control over me, Fred! I can work with whom I want, and you can't stop me. There is nothing wrong with Bosco! I don't know why you have such a big grudge against him, but you need to lose it, and soon." Faith stated, tears forming in her eyes. She hated it when she fought with Fred because she was afraid he would up and leave with their kids.  
  
"Or what?" Fred asked.  
  
She thought for a moment, and sighed. Her voice softened, "Or I can't be with you." Fred's face went blank. Clearly he was shocked that she would say that.  
  
"You're going to choose Bosco over our marriage?" Fred asked, his voice had a hint of sadness.  
  
"No, I am not going to choose Bosco over our marriage, Fred. But I cannot continue living a life where you keep telling me what I can and cannot do. It's not in me. I am my own person, as you are your own." Faith said. A tear had fallen slowly down her cheek.  
  
Fred looked down for a moment, and then returned his attention back to Faith. "Then I guess this is it." Faith's face dropped. The look on her face read 'why?' "I can't continue on with our marriage and know that one day you will go to work and might not come back. I go through that every day. And what's worse is that Bosco has put you in harm's way more times than I can count-"  
  
"No, Fred, it wasn't Bosco who put me in harm's way. It's part of the job. My job is to keep the world safe and free from harm, drugs, and terrorism." Faith interrupted.  
  
"See, Faith? That's just it. Your job is a dangerous one and if I ever lost you, I would blame myself because I didn't try and do something to keep YOU safe."  
  
"Fred, it's not your job to keep me safe!" There was a long silence. There were more things that they both wanted to say, but neither of them spoke up. Finally, the silence broke. "Listen," Faith started, "I am gonna go."  
  
"Where?" Fred asked.  
  
"I don't know. But I can't stay here. The sooner I leave, the better and easier it will be." Faith said walking to her dresser and pulling out some clothes. She grabbed her extra duffle bag, put the clothes and her off duty gun in it and zipped it up. As she walked out of the bedroom, Fred followed her out.  
  
"Faith, don't go. You can stay and I will leave." Fred said.  
  
"No, I have somewhere I can go. I will be back tomorrow to get some more things." Faith walked to the hallway closet and grabbed her jacket and fall scarf. "Tell the kids I love them and I will see them soon." She said, putting both articles of clothing on and walked out the door.  
  
"Faith-" Fred said before she shut the door behind her.  
  
She shook her head. "No, Fred." She shut the door and left the building.  
  
Bosco looked at his alarm clock. It read 10:37 PM. For some reason that night, he couldn't seem to fall asleep, and he had to be at work by 5:30 the next morning. He sighed and got up. There was no use in trying to fall asleep when he knew it wasn't going to happen any time soon, so he went into his living room and sat on his new black leather sofa. As he reached for his remote, he heard a knock on the door. "Who would be knocking on my door at this time?" He asked himself. Getting up, he ran his left hand through his hair to tidy it up a bit and opened the door with his right.  
  
"Faith? What's wrong?" He asked when he saw her standing there. She was soaked from head to toe, and he glanced at his window, surprised to see that it was raining cats and dogs. But that wasn't the only thing that was wrong with her. She was crying. Her eyes were red and puffy, and she was shaking. He moved away from the doorway and let her in.  
  
"I don't mean to barge in on you like this.......but do you think that I could crash here for the night?" Faith asked wiping the tears away from her eyes.  
  
"Sure you can." Bosco said, still bewildered as to what had happened to her. It wasn't like her to show up at his door, especially crying. "What happened?" He asked.  
  
Faith was silent for a few moments. "Can we talk about it tomorrow? I am really tired and I just want to sleep."  
  
"Sure we can." He looked at her duffle bag, which was just as soaked as she was, and he was guessing that the contents of the bag were also soaked. "Hey, listen, let me get you some dry clothes and I will throw your clothes in the dryer." Faith nodded and took her jacket and scarf off. Bosco went into his room, Faith closely behind him. He grabbed one of his laundry baskets and took Faith's scarf and jacket from her and put them in the basket. Then he went to his dresser and grabbed a pair of sweat pants, boxers, and one of his long t-shirts and handed them to Faith.  
  
"Thanks, Bos." She said. He nodded. She took the laundry basket into his bathroom with her and changed into his clothes. She couldn't help but notice that they smelled like him as she put them on. When she was finished changing, she put her clothes in the basket and left the bathroom.  
  
"Here, I'll take that." Bosco said taking her soaked clothes away from her. "You can crash on my bed; I'll take the couch."  
  
"No, that's not necessary. I can take the couch. I'm just happy I have a place to stay for the night." Faith replied.  
  
"Okay. But listen, you can stay as long as you need. There's no rush." He offered. Faith gave him a small smile and nodded.  
  
"Thanks, again, Bos." Faith said.  
  
As Faith walked into his living room, Bosco put Faith's clothes into the dryer and got her a pillow and blanket. He unfolded the couch for her, and as she lay down, he wished he could do more for her, but he knew that she wouldn't want to talk tonight.  
  
"Well, good-night." Bosco said.  
  
"'Night, Bos." Faith said.  
  
"Hey, Bosco?" He heard a whisper. He opened his eyes and saw Faith standing over him.  
  
"Is something wrong?" Bosco asked sitting up.  
  
"Um...... do you think that I could stay in here with you?" Faith asked.  
  
She looked like she was a little girl who was afraid of the dark, as she stood right there in front of him. Without a word, he moved over to the other end of the bed and lifted the quilt. She could feel the heat gather at her cheeks, but she slid in next to him. For the both of them it felt awkward. Faith broke the silence.  
  
"Fred and I are getting a divorce."  
  
Caught off guard by the sudden act of conversation, and the shock of what she had just said, he turned to lie on his side, facing her. "What happened?"  
  
"We got in a fight and he said he was going to call the captain and tell him to partner me up with someone else. I told him that I could work with whoever I want and he can't rule my life and was like 'or what?' and I said that I would have to leave him. So here I am, laying in bed with you." Faith said. When he remained silent, she turned to face him. He was just staring at her. "What?"  
  
"I ruined your marriage." He said.  
  
"No, no you didn't." She replied.  
  
"If I hadn't been your partner, then you guys would still be happy." Bosco said.  
  
"Bosco, you have no idea how happy I am that we are partners. To tell you the truth, our friendship means more to me than anything else in the world. As for Fred and I getting divorced, it's long overdue." Faith replied.  
  
"Then why are you so sad?" Bosco asked.  
  
"It's the thought of being alone that scares me. I am so used to having someone to go home to. I mean, I know that I have my kids to go home to, but that's different. I want to have someone waiting for me when I go home and I can talk to him about my day and share my life with him. And not having that is scary. It's never been like that, not for the past 13 years." Faith replied.  
  
"You have me." Bosco said.  
  
Faith looked at him, and he read her eyes. For the first time that night, he saw happiness in them. She smiled. Smiling back, he kissed her on the forehead. "We have to work tomorrow, so we should probably get back to sleep. We can talk some more in the morning." Bosco said. Faith nodded and turned to lay on her other side, facing away from him. Then, they both fell into a deep sleep. 


	2. Chapter 2

  
  
"How are you feeling?" Bosco asked as they drove through the streets of New York.  
  
"Better, thanks. Um, I really appreciate you letting me stay with you."  
  
"It's not a problem. It's the least I can do since I am part of the reason you and Fred have gone sour." Bosco said, then looked at her. She rolled her eyes, and looked at him. For a few brief moments, they held each other's gaze, until Bosco remembered that he was driving, and he needed to pay attention to the road.  
  
"55 David, a missing person's call just came in. 27 Prospect St. Can you check it out?"  
  
"55 David responding." Faith said into her walky-talky." Faith looked at Bosco. "Let's go." Bosco nodded and sped down the street, sirens blaring throughout the still dark streets.  
  
At 27 Prospect St.........  
  
"Who was she seen with last?" Bosco asked.  
  
"I don't know. She was at her friend's house and she was going to walk home." The mother was crying hysterically, obviously worried about her daughter.  
  
"And how old is she?" Faith asked.  
  
"Eleven." The mother replied.  
  
"You let your eleven year old daughter walk home from her friends house? No wonder she got picked up! Who lets their eleven year old daughter walk on the streets alone? Certainly not a good mother!" Faith blew up. The mother started to cry harder.  
  
"Excuse us for a moment." Bosco said, pulling Faith by the arm with him. "What the hell was that about?"  
  
Faith sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just under stress, and the thought that she would let her daughter walk alone pushed me over the edge." Faith replied, feeling terribly sorry for what she had just said to the woman.  
  
"Don't tell me you're sorry; tell her." He looked in the mother's direction. He and Faith walked back into the living room.  
  
"Listen, I'm really sorry. Personal issues got in the way of my choice of words. I didn't mean it." Faith apologized.  
  
The mother nodded, and her crying lessened. "Do you think you can find her?" She asked.  
  
"Well, we need her friend's information: where she lives, who she lives with. And we need to know if you have had any enemies. Anyone who might want to hurt you in any way." Bosco replied, handing the mother a pad of paper and a pen so she could write the information down.  
  
The mother nodded and started writing down names. After a few minutes of silence, not including the occasional sniffling, she handed the list to Bosco.  
  
"We will do everything we can to make sure that she comes home safe and sound. We'll give you a call if anything comes up." Bosco said. The mother nodded and she showed them to the door. As they left, Faith looked at the mom and gave her a weak smile.  
  
Later that night, after work.......  
  
"Hey, Em. How are you? I'm fine......... No, I'm not going to be coming home tonight......... Well, I am going to be staying with a friend......... I miss you too......... Listen, I will talk to you in the morning. I will stop by the house before you go to school, ok? All right. I love you too, hunny. Bye." Faith hung up the phone.  
  
"How are things over there?" Bosco asked.  
  
"Well, things seem to be going okay from what Em tells me." Faith replied as the door bell rang. "That's the Chinese food." Faith said getting up from the couch.  
  
"I got it." Bosco said walking over towards the door with Faith. Faith got in front of him and put her hand against his chest to stop him from moving another step.  
  
"No, I think you are mistaken. I've got it." Faith said in a half playful, half 'you better listen' tone. Bosco looked at her and gave her a look.  
  
"Okay, you win." He said holding his hands up in the air, as if he was in the middle of a bank robbery. As Faith moved to turn around, Bosco put his hands down and picked her up.  
  
"Bosco!" She shrieked. "Put me down!" She giggled.  
  
Bosco moved over to the couch and set her down. "I win" he said and moved to the door to pay for the food.  
  
Faith blew the stray hair away from her face that had fallen out of her hair tie. Defeated, she sat back and watched him pay for the food. "Good- bye." He said and walked back into the house. She watched him as he put the food on the table in front of the couch and he sat next to her. "What?" He asked.  
  
She smiled. "Nothing." 'I'm falling for you.' She thought in her mind and heart. He looked at her.  
  
"There's something different about you. I can't quite put my finger on it." Bosco said thinking.  
  
Faith shrugged with a small smile. "Where do you keep your plates?" Faith asked, smile still on her face.  
  
Bosco looked at her with an expression that read, 'you gotta be up to something'. "In the cupboard above the sink." He replied. He watched as Faith moved into the kitchen and grabbed two plates. As she reentered the living room, she handed him a plate and sat next to him.  
  
"Want to watch a movie?" Bosco asked.  
  
"Sure, what do you have?" Faith replied.  
  
"Hmmm......... Well, do you want a scary movie, comedy, one of your mushy girl movies-"  
  
"Wait, you actually own some?" Faith chuckled.  
  
Bosco sighed. "They're for when my mom comes over." He replied.  
  
Faith nodded. "Whatever you say, Bos." Faith said. "How about a comedy?" Faith replied taking the contents of the brown paper bag out.  
  
"Okay, how about......... Liar Liar?" Bosco asked.  
  
"Yeah. I love that movie." Faith replied. As Bosco got the movie ready, Faith put food on both of their plates. When they were both situated, they grabbed their plates, ate and watched the movie.By the end of the movie, both Bosco and Faith had tears pouring down their cheeks from laughing so much.  
  
"I haven't had this much fun since......... well, I can't remember." Faith said, wiping her face rid of tears.  
  
"I know what you mean. I normally never do this. Order Chinese food and watch a movie, that is. Most of the time, I just lounge or go to the bar and have a few drinks. But I must say, it's great having you here. Makes my life seem better than I thought it was." Bosco replied.  
  
Faith smiled.  
  
"What?" Bosco asked.  
  
"Nothing. That was just sweet. Fred never said those things to me. He always thought I was useless and only used me for the kids." Her face dropped.  
  
"Hey, you're here now. There is no need to be talking about Fred anymore." Bosco replied.  
  
"I know." She looked up and gave him a small smile. "You know what?" Faith asked.  
  
"What?" Bosco replied.  
  
"Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if I had met you before Fred." Realizing what she had just said, she wished she never said it.  
  
Bosco was silent; didn't know what to say. Did this mean that she felt the same way about him as he always felt for her since the day they met?  
  
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that." Faith said getting up to throw away the remaining food that was on her plate.  
  
"No." Bosco said, taking hold of her arm and sitting her back down. He took her plate and put it on the table. "What do you mean?" Bosco asked.  
  
Faith sighed a little. "Sometime I wonder what kind of relationship you and I would have if I met you before I met Fred." Faith said looking back at him. She looked into his eyes and saw that there was happiness in them. It made her smile because she knew that he felt the same way. As moment by moment passed as they gazed into each other's eyes, they moved closer and closer to one another, and soon, they kissed. 


	3. Chapter 3

  
  
Pulling away, Faith looked at him. Did they really just do that? She pinched herself to make sure that this was real. That made Bos laugh.  
  
"Yes, Faith. It really happened." He smiled.  
  
Faith smiled back. "So, what now? Where do we go from here?" Faith asked.  
  
"Anywhere that you are comfortable with." Bosco replied.  
  
"Can we take this slow? I mean-"  
  
"I know what you mean." Bosco cut her off. "And yes, we can it as slow as you want."  
  
"Actually........." Faith smiled and leaned in for another kiss.  
  
Bosco woke up to the sound of the alarm clock. He looked over to it, and was surprised to see that he overslept an hour. He did that close to never. Then he felt an arm curl across his stomach and looked at her. She was looking up at him smiling. "Good morning sleepy head." Bosco said.  
  
"G'mornin'." Faith said. "We're late for work. And we still have to look for that little girl."  
  
Bosco yawned. "I'll call work and tell them we'll be there in an hour. You go hop in the shower and I'll meet you there in a few." He smiled.  
  
"Okay, see you there." Faith said and got out of bed. "Oh, and about last night," she grinned, "you were great."  
  
Bosco chuckled and threw a pillow at her. After dodging it, Faith walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower.  
  
Bosco picked up the phone and dialed the number to the precinct. "Hey, Boss. Yeah, I know we're late. We'll be there in an hour. No, she is staying with me indefinitely. She has personal problems at home......... No, nothing is going on between us." Bosco lied. "Okay, see you in an hour." He hung up the phone and went to join Faith in the shower.  
  
"Thank you for your help. If you hear anything, please let us know." Faith said, leaving the little girl's friend's house.  
  
As they got back in the car, finished for the day, Bosco sighed. "It never gets any easier. So many children go missing in New York; it's a miracle if any are found, especially alive."  
  
"Yeah, I know. I hope nothing ever happens to my kids. I don't know what I would do......... Oh, shit!" Faith cursed.  
  
"What?" Bosco asked.  
  
"I told Em that I would stop by this morning before she went to school and see her. She's going to be mad at me." Faith replied, taking out her cell phone. She dialed the house and after three rings, Emily picked up. "Hi sweetie......... I know I said I would stop by, but I woke up an hour late. How about I come over right now and we all have dinner?" There was a long pause. "Okay, then I will see you tomorrow. I love you." Click. Emily hung up. Faith sighed.  
  
"Is she mad?" Bosco asked.  
  
"A little. But I am going to go there for dinner tomorrow night because Fred is working, so I will be back around seven."  
  
"Okay." Bosco replied. "So, what do you want to do tonight?" He grinned.  
  
Faith laughed. "Okay, we can have some fun."  
  
"You know, I've always wanted to play 'strip twister'." Bosco said. Faith laughed and they continued home.  
  
Later on that night, Bosco and Faith had their fun, but it didn't end with just 'strip twister'. For OBVIOUS reasons. But it wasn't until later on that night around ten thirty when the phone suddenly rang.  
  
"Who the hell could be calling around this time?" Faith asked.  
  
"I don't know. Let's see." Bosco looked at his caller ID. "It's a private caller." He answered the phone. "Hello?" Bosco asked. "Yes, she's here." Bosco handed Faith the phone, his face pale. "It's the hospital."  
  
"Oh my gosh. Hello?" Faith asked. "Okay, I'll be right there." She hung up the phone.  
  
"Who is it? What happened?" Bosco asked.  
  
"It's Charlie. He was hit by a car a few hours ago. We have to go." Faith said. She and Bosco jumped out of bed, threw some clothes on and were out the door.  
  
As they ran through the emergency doors, Faith had tears flowing down her cheeks in little rivulets. Bosco was holding her hand firmly, hoping it would bring her some kind of comfort.  
  
"I'm here to see Charlie Yokas, my son. He was brought in a few hours ago." Faith said when they reached the admit desk.  
  
"Yes, he just got out of surgery a half hour ago. He is in the ICU; room 425." The desk clerk replied.  
  
They rushed to the elevator. When they got to Charlie's floor, they automatically saw Fred there. Hearing a noise, he looked up and saw Faith, holding Bosco's hand. He got up and walked over to them with an upset look on his face.  
  
"Hi, Fred." Faith said. "How is he doing?"  
  
He looked at Bosco for a brief moment and then back at Faith. "He isn't out of the woods yet. We still have a lot of waiting to do." He replied.  
  
"Did they catch the guy who did this?" Bosco asked.  
  
Fred, again, looked at Bosco, disgust and anger in his eyes. "No, not yet. It was a hit and run; no one got a license plate number or anything."  
  
"That's just great. People are so stupid! You see a ten year old get hit by a car and not even one person gets a license plate number. We're never going to catch him now........." Faith said. Tears were still continuing to fall down her cheeks, and even though Fred was there, she was still holding Bosco's hand. "Why didn't you call me earlier?" Faith asked.  
  
"I-I don't know." Fred replied.  
  
"Where is Emily?"  
  
"At home. One of the neighbors is checking in on her once and a while to make sure she's okay." Fred replied.  
  
Bosco looked at Faith. "Do you want me to go there and watch her?"  
  
Fred didn't like this. He didn't want the man who stole his wife away in his house.  
  
"Yeah, could you? I will give you a call later." Faith replied. Bosco nodded, squeezed her hand reassuringly and left.  
  
When Bosco was clear out of sight Fred went crazy with anger. "You seemed to move on fast."  
  
"I wasn't planning on it-"  
  
"Yeah, sure. That's what they all say, Faith." Fred interrupted.  
  
"Listen," Faith said, trying to rid her face from the tears, even though they continued to flow down her cheeks, "I don't want to talk about this right now. Us fighting won't make things any better for Charlie." Faith said and walked into her son's room. Fred followed her with his eyes, hating her for moving on so quickly.  
  
Bosco walked into the Fred's house, uneasy. He hadn't been there since the day he cried in Faith's arms. As he walked through the house, he heard someone crying. It was Emily. He walked to her door, and knocked. "Emily? It's Bosco. Will you open the door, please?" A moment later, she opened the door, and returned and sat on her bed. Bosco stepped into her room. "Are you okay?" Bosco asked.  
  
Emily shook her head. "Do you want to talk about it?" Bosco asked.  
  
Emily was still. "It's Dad." She replied.  
  
"What about your dad?" Bosco asked.  
  
"He wanted Mom back, and the thought the only way to do that is by one of us getting hurt........." Saying this caused more tears to fall from her eyes.  
  
What? Was this true? "You mean, your dad hit Charlie with his car?" Bosco asked, shocked, angry, and confused. Emily nodded. 


	4. Chapter 4

  
  
"That stupid son of a bitch." Bosco muttered under his breath.  
  
"What are you going to do?" Emily asked.  
  
"I'm going to call the station and tell them to arrest him." Bosco replied.  
  
"But then where will I stay?" Emily asked.  
  
"You can stay with your mother and I."  
  
Emily nodded. "Okay."  
  
"You did the right thing by telling your me. Now he can't hurt any of you guys anymore." Bosco said.  
  
"Can we go to the hospital now?" Emily asked.  
  
"Sure, let's go." Bosco said. Emily got her jacket on and they left.  
  
At the hospital.........  
  
When Bosco and Emily got to the hospital, they went to Charlie's floor where they found Faith sitting out in the hall alone.  
  
"Hey, Mom." Emily said walking up to Faith.  
  
"What are you guys doing here?" Faith asked looking up.  
  
"Emily wanted to come here. See Charlie. Listen, I have to talk to you. It's important." Bosco replied. "Emily, you can go in there and see your brother." Emily nodded and entered her brother's room and sat down next to him on one of the chairs.  
  
"What do you need to talk to be about?" Faith asked.  
  
"Where is Fred?" Bosco asked.  
  
"He went to go get some coffee......... Why?"  
  
"There's something that you need to know. It was Fred who hit Charlie with his car. Emily told me........." Bosco replied.  
  
"WHAT?! You have got to be kidding me......... Why would he do that?" Faith asked.  
  
"To get you back. He thought that if something happened to one of the kids that you would go to him for comfort and that would bring you guys back together." Bosco replied.  
  
Faith was silent. Her face was pale and her cheeks were tear stained. She sat down, feeling a little faint.  
  
"Are you okay?" Bosco asked, kneeling in front of her.  
  
"Did you call the station?" Faith asked, not responding to his question.  
  
Bosco nodded. "They are coming here now. I told them to leave their sirens off so he wouldn't get scared off."  
  
Just as Bosco finished his sentence, Fred came walking down the hall. He had a cup of coffee in his hands and a little stuffed animal, obviously for Charlie. When he saw Bosco with Faith, his face hardened even more.  
  
"I brought you some coffee." Fred said, handing the cup to Faith.  
  
"No thanks." Faith replied, not taking the coffee.  
  
Fred looked at Bosco, who was still kneeling in front of Faith. He wanted to knock his lights out, but he knew that would upset Faith, so he decided not to. He looked back at Faith, who wouldn't look at him even if someone held a gun to her head and told her to do so. Since he wasn't getting any attention from her, he decided to sit down, across the hall from them.  
  
A few minutes later, Bosco heard footsteps coming down the hall and he got up. It was one of the officers. He looked down the other side of the hall and there was another one. They obviously knew that he would try to run away and escape. Fred looked up and saw the officers. 'Shit!' He thought. He looked into Charlie's room and saw Emily in there. 'That little bitch.'  
  
"Excuse me, Mr. Yokas. You have the right to remain silent. Anything that you say can and will be used against you........."  
  
Faith looked across the hall and saw the officer put Fred under arrest. She stood up and walked over to him. "You ever go near my kids again, I will make you wish you were dead." Faith said coldly.  
  
As the officers took Fred away, Bosco moved over to Faith who was light headed. "You okay?" He asked.  
  
"I will be. I just hope Charlie will." The tears started back up again. "He used them to get to me. He almost killed my son! That rat bastard, I hope he gets life." Bosco stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. As she sobbed, her knees went weak and she and Bosco slowly fell to the floor. There, he rocked her like a child who scraped their knee. Faith ended up crying herself to sleep, on the floor of the hallway, in Bosco's lap. 


	5. Chapter 5

Bosco waited with Faith through the night after taking Emily back home. The doctors and nurses had made several visits to Charlie's room. His condition wasn't good, and they feared he would slip into a coma.

Faith was asleep on an extra bed next to Charlie's while Bosco remained awake. He couldn't imagine what she was going through. First the separation and then this.......the thought of her losing her son. He couldn't do anything but pray that Charlie would be alright and pull through this.

Faith stirred and slowly opened her eyes to see that Charlie was the same as he was before. Angry tears fell from her eyes and gathered on her shirt. She was completely horrified that Fred would stoop this low just to get her back. Never in her 13 years of being married did she think that Fred would hurt their kids.

"Hey." Bosco asked standing up from his chair in the corner.

"You're still here?" Faith asked.

Bosco nodded and walked over towards her. "I wanted to be here in case......."

Faith nodded. "I know. Thanks for staying." She sighed. "What time is it?"

Bosco looked down at his watch. "Four twenty one AM." He replied. Faith nodded. "How you holding up?"

"Not so good." She replied as another tear fell down her right cheek. "I don't want to lose him, Bos. I-I can't." Faith replied sobbing.

Bosco gathered her in his arms and they both cried. He hated it when she cried. Knowing that she was in pain was not a thing that he took lightly. She looked up at Bosco, wiping the tears off of her face.

"I should probably go home and check on Emily." Faith said tucking hair behind her ears.

"If you want I can go and watch her until she wakes up. I can bring her back here later if you want." Bosco replied.

"That would be great." She kissed him on the lips. "Thank you." He gave her a smile and stood up. Before walking out of the room, he stood over Charlie and whispered, "Get better, little man. We need you." And kissed him on the forehead. Faith's heart broke when she saw that and started crying again. Bosco kissed Faith on the forehead and went back to check on Emily.

At 9:41, Faith's house..........

When Emily awoke, she heard someone moving about in the kitchen. Curious she got up and walked to see who was making the noise. Her heart sank when she saw Bosco. Yesterday wasn't a nightmare, it really happened. Her dad was in jail, her brother in the hospital critically hurt, and her mom moved out.

"Hey, Bosco." Emily said leaning against the wall.

Bosco turned away from making eggs and toast and looked at Emily. "Hey, kid."

"I was hoping to wake up and have yesterday be nothing more than a nightmare......" She said.

"I know you did. But Charlie will be okay. And you guys will be safe again." Bosco replied.

Emily gave Bosco a small smile. "I know we'll be safe, but I hope you're right about Charlie. From what I saw last night, he was pretty bad." Emily said, tears pooling in her eyes, but never fell.

Bosco decided to change the subject. "Hey, you hungry? I made eggs and toast."

Emily shook her head. She didn't feel like eating anything, which he expected. "Come on, eat a little. After you eat we can go to the hospital and see Charlie." Bosco said, trying to get her to eat.

Emily gave a slight nod and Bosco gave her her food. 


	6. Chapter 6

As Bosco and Emily entered the ICU, there was a lot of commotion. He was curious as to what was going on, and he soon found out. Walking towards Charlie's room, he saw Faith standing outside and sobbing uncontrollably, a fist to her mouth, and the other hand on the glass window. Bosco and Emily both ran to see what was wrong. It wasn't pretty. Bosco looked through the window and saw Charlie being shocked repeatedly, but always remaining flat-lined. Sheer terror was plastered on Emily's face and ran down the hall sobbing.

"Faith," Bosco said putting his arms around her, "you don't need to see this. You shouldn't have to. Come on, let's go to the lounge and wait there. The doctor will come and tell us what happens." Bosco said trying to hide his pain while comforting her.

"No, Bosco! This can't be happening!" She said pounding her fists into his chest.

"Faith, come on, come to the lounge." Bosco persisted.

"No, I want to be here with my baby." She sobbed and turned away from Bosco and to the window.

"Faith, please. Come to the lounge." Bosco said, grabbing her arm.

She looked away from the window to her arm where Bosco had a hold of her. She just stared for a few moments and then looked at him, into his eyes. In them she saw him plead that she go with him. She nodded.

Before walking to the lounge, Bosco took one last look at Charlie being shocked, and had tears in his eyes that never fell.

In the lounge......

"I don't understand what happened!" Faith sobbed. "He was fine up until ten minutes before you got here and then he just started seizing and his vitals started falling." She cried into his chest. "It's all my fault this happened."

"Shh......there's nothing you could've done, Faith. There was no way you could've known this would happen." Bosco said trying to sooth her.

"It is my fault, Bos. If I had stayed with Fred none of this would've happened and Charlie would be okay." She sobbed.

"It's not your fault, Faith." Bosco said, lifting her chin with his forefinger. "You never knew that Fred was going to do this. And another thing, Charlie will be okay. I know it; I can feel it."

"I hope you're right, Bosco. I really do." Faith said resting her head on his shoulder.

15 minutes later.......

Dr. Curtis Michael opened the lounge door to see that Faith had fallen asleep in Bosco's arms. Bosco was in a daze, and didn't notice the doctor standing there. Dr. Michael cleared his throat, and Bosco's head shot up causing Faith to wake up startled.

"What is it? What happened?" Faith asked, terror in her voice.

Dr. Michael pulled up a chair in front of the couch Bosco and Faith were sitting on. "Okay, as you know, Charlie was in critical condition not too long ago. Now, we have revived him, but he is in unstable condition and we fear that he might slip into a coma."

"Oh my gosh." Faith whispered, tears brimming her eyes.

"Now, the only chance that it won't happen is if the swelling in his brain goes down." He paused for a brief moment. "I know that you are in a very emotional state right now, but this needs to be asked. In case he does slip into a coma, do want us to prolong his life by keeping him on oxygen, or do you want us to let him go?"

Faith was in shock. She couldn't think clearly, millions of things rushing through her head. "If he goes into a coma, is there chance that he could wake up?"

"Yes, there is a chance he could come out of it." Dr. Michael replied.

"Then I want you to keep him on oxygen. Don't let my baby die." Faith said before sobbing once more.

With that, the doctor got up. "We will do our best." He shook hands with Bosco and left.

Faith looked up at Bosco, her eyes asking if she made the right choice. 

"Everything will be okay, Faith. He said that there was only a chance of that happening. And I know that he will be okay." Bosco said.

"How can you be so sure?" Faith asked.

"Like I said, I have a feeling." He replied. "Listen, I'm going to find out where Emily went off to. I have my pager on me if anything changes." He kissed her on the forehead and left.

It didn't take Bosco long to find Emily. She was sitting outside the ER on the sidewalk, her head resting on her arms, which were folded across one another on her legs. Her face was tear-stained, but tears no longer fell from her eyes. She seemed to be staring off into space, numb. Bosco walked over to her and sat next to her.

"Is he going to be okay?" Emily asked, her voice monotone.

Bosco sighed. "They're doing the best they can."

"Bosco, I asked if he will be okay." Emily said, frustration in her voice, she looked up.

Bosco understood why she was reacting this way. "All honesty?" Bosco asked. Emily nodded. "He might slip into a coma if the swelling in his brain doesn't reduce. And there's a chance he may not recover from it. But he'll be okay, he's a tough kid."

Emily nodded. "Thanks for telling me like I am a human being."

"You wanted to know." Bosco was silent for a few moments. "Listen, why don't you come inside with your mom and I?" Bosco asked.

Emily nodded and they walked inside. 


End file.
